TECHNOPHILIA

“Western society has accepted as unquestionable a technological imperative that is quite as arbitrary as the most primitive taboo: not merely the duty to foster invention and constantly to create technological novelties, but equally the duty to surrender to these novelties unconditionally, just because they are offered, without respect to their human consequences.” - Lewis Mumford

OK, I admit it, I am a technophile, a technology junkie! I was eagerly awaiting the announcement of Apple’s new iPad, today. Seeing how I am a dedicated Apple computer user and I have an iPod and iPhone, I thought that this new device would be a fantastic new addition to the armamentarium of my Apple toys. My Apple toys are all wonderful, they talk to each other and I can concentrate on my work without worrying about the hardware and the software. Compared to PCs, my Apple computer allows me to be more productive and I have fun while working (OK, Mr Jobs, my advertising bill is in the mail!).

When the announcement was made, I must admit that I was rather underwhelmed. I had secretly thought that I was going to be one of the first people to invest in one of these new iPads. After seeing it all, I quickly relinquished my urgent desire to obtain one and shelved my ownership plans for a couple of years, at least. My Apple MacBookPro, my iPhone and iPod deliver everything the iPad does and more. For me at least, the iPad broke no new ground and for a seasoned Apple product user, the whole release was a bit of a “ho-hum” affair. “Awww, but all of my toys do all of that, already!”

Now, if I were a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed young thing just starting out and not having been exposed to so much technology and to so many Apple computers since year dot, I would be wowed by this iPad and would have pawned my grandmother to get one! Having been nurtured on Apple products since their inception and having set my expectations so very high, I am understandably disappointed.

Much of the disappointment comes from my constant use of my MacBookPro, which I carry about everywhere (I don’t have a desktop computer at home or at work) and this laptop computer does everything I wish it to do on a nice, large, high resolution display. Who needs Apps when one has all the programs that one needs? When one does on it everything that one needs? The internet is accessible everywhere, Skype allows me to talk to anyone I want, I have a DVD drive (grizzle, grizzle – where is that BluRay drive Apple?) that can let me watch movies, or record my own DVDs. I have on it iTunes, iCal, Safari (as well as another three web-browsers), Office, Adobe Creative Suite, my music software, my eBooks, etc, etc.

If I had a clunky old desktop PC running Windows or Doors and having to click left button or right button or search the hard disk for hours to see where my stuff was saved, I could understand that the iPad would be a magical, heavenly, fantastic; a leap into the future. If I had a black and white Kindle with its limited usefulness, I would leap at the iPad and switch to it immediately. If had an old mobile phone or a old iPod, I would quickly ditch them and move towards the Apple solutions of iPhone and/or iPad.

Now if the iPad came with solar charging (;-), and iPhone capabilities in terms of making phone calls, if the iPad were equipped with powerful new apps that were different to the iPhone and Apple apps already in use, if it had a few hundred gigabytes HD storage, if it had a DVD (preferably BluRay drive), I would be queuing to get one. All that of course together with the reasonable under $1,000 price!

Oh, to have a jaded palate. It’s such a tyranny of old age and experience!

technophile |ˈteknəˌfīl| noun
A person who is enthusiastic about new technology (a “technology junkie”).
DERIVATIVES
technophilia |ˌteknəˈfilēə| noun
technophilic |ˌteknəˈfilik| adjective
ORIGIN: From Greek tekhnē ‘art, craft’ + Greek philos ‘loving.’